A Living Purpose

Purpose, however common, is one of those rare things that touches everything. There is not one thing that came into being that is not directly related to purpose. A living purpose possesses within itself a connective ability that bridges the gap between God and eternity, eternity and the heavens, the heavens and the earth, the earth and time. It also connects time and people, people and solutions. The solutions are what are essential to solve the problems of our time.

To create a shared understanding, I explain purpose this way. Purpose answers the question of why. It reflects the original thought, will, and intent for something. The answer to purpose communicates the reason something is done, created, or exists. Considering this, embedded in the response of purpose is a picture of the end. Purpose precedes existence which causes exceptional design work to begin with the end in mind. In analytical terms, it means that safely contained within your end, your destiny, is your beginning. Once your end is established, only then can your beginning effectively begin. A living purpose is like that. You start at the end, only to come back to the end.

When I speak about a living purpose, I am referring to purpose as it is applied to human beings. The screwdriver is a thing created with a specific purpose. However, the screwdriver has a patent associated with it but no life. You and I do not have a patent applied to our life, only the promise of living a fulfilled life. Living is the inspiration of vitality and functionality. It is what God breathed into Adam. God’s deposit into Adam enabled him to participate in expanding the Kingdom like no other species. That inspiration creates the basis for Kingdom life.   

In Kingdom life, vitality and functionality are different for every person. Because our individual purpose is so unique, the inspiration of vitality and functionality is customized for each of us. This customized inspiration shapes the design of your life. It is what makes the development of your human capital so critical. Human capital is your unique set of competencies, knowledge, social and personality attributes, including creativity, embodied in your ability to perform labor. The fruit of that labor produces the economic value necessary to create your preferred future.

The development of your human capital creates the signature expression of your leadership. Dr. Myles Munroe said he had over 300 definitions of leadership in his files and felt none of them communicated the depth associated with the responsibility of leadership. So he crafted his own. His definition says, “Effective leadership is the capacity to influence others through inspiration, generated by passion, motivated by vision, birthed by conviction, produced by purpose.” It all begins with purpose. It all ends with purpose.

Embracing living, by purpose, on purpose is a choice. Living in this manner sets up encounters where time and eternity intersect. Our life becomes the manifestation of events previously recorded. It causes us to understand and move through life from success versus moving through life trying to obtain success. It develops our human capital so that it causes our gifts to stand out and opens doorways into significant opportunities. It sets up the response to why we are configured and calibrated as an individual. It allows us to reach our expected end, maximizing the potential to be and do everything we are on assignment to do. The wise choice among the many alternatives is to choose living, by purpose, on purpose.

~  Calvin D Brown

Living@CalvinDBrown.com